2 april

The circus is in town, or a political debate in The Hague

In many of Bradbury’s tales, the circus plays the role of the fascinating stranger, the conjunction of all what is mysterious and marvelous and scary and also powerful. I suppose that the circus embodied part of the fascination of the traveler bards of earlier ages, those people capable to bring home the news and the marvels of a broader world. 

Yet we know today that circuses, the few circuses that still exist, are nothing like Bradbury’s powerful and meaningful ensembles. At best they are an amusing succession of very predictable and utterly known sketches, that the few that are willing to attend, enjoy mostly due to some sort of childhood nostalgia. 

Here in The Netherlands yesterday we had the debate to start the formation of a new government. And I do not feel any different as if a circus would have parked in the little square across the corner of my house. What a waste of time. 

Once upon a time, this debate would determine the welfare of the country for years to come. After a first round of conversations the parliament would be able to see which kind of government was likely to emerge. Sharp questions and sharper arguments might even shape the priorities of the government to come. This debate, at the side of the debate to approve the national yearly budget, would be the yearly highlight of an observer of politics, as myself.

Yet seeing yesterday’s debate I have the strong feeling of being captive in the audience of a bad, and old circus. In most countries nowadays there are no tigers in small cages, nor bears that dance at the whip of a clown. Yet now and then such circus appear, to the initial repulsion and further disinterest of the public. That is how I feel. Don’t they realize that those tricks are known and actually not surprising at all, not anymore? Don’t they see that they are even repulsive? Can they not feel how far away from the public interest is the fact that the leader of the party that won the elections by landslide lied about some technical detail of the new government formation process? Can’t the politicians not see that nobody cares besides themselves? 

The funny thing is that my fellow politics observers will be furious at my last question. Of course is super relevant that a potential future PM lies to the parliament! He should not become PM then! But this is just like observing a old clown juggling two balls. Yes, ok, he is a bad clown. Obviously. But he is not relevant anymore. The only thing is that he, and his captive audience, haven’t realize it yet. 

And that is the problem of nowadays political debates. They are dead, and they have not noticed.